Electrical corporations: interconnection: Public Utilities Commission: transmission development monitor.

The deadline for large electrical corporations to initiate permitting was shortened from one year to 180 days following adoption of a transmission plan or execution of a generator interconnection agreement.

Large electrical corporations must now submit a project-specific schedule to the transmission development monitor within 180 days, including anticipated filing dates and key interim steps (engineering design, environmental studies, prefiling consultation). Corporations must promptly notify the monitor of anticipated revisions with revised dates and written explanations.

The commission must adopt standardized data reporting templates by April 1, 2027, with minimum content including original and current timelines, delays and projected duration, written explanations of delay causes, preconstruction dependency status, staff and capital resources allocated, third-party contracting, prioritization criteria, and any decisions to defer or deprioritize projects.

Any equipment procurement, construction, or self-build option ordered as a remedial action must comply with the large electrical corporation's design, engineering, operational, safety, cybersecurity, and reliability standards (including NERC requirements). The corporation retains final approval authority and must complete review within 30 days of submission.

Before finalizing an annual report or notice of material deficiency, the transmission development monitor must provide the affected corporation a summary of the finding and 15 days to respond or seek clarification. The response is included in the report but does not extend the 90-day commission action period.

A new 'transmission development monitor' is established within the commission to continuously (not just annually) monitor and review corporate submissions, progress on network upgrades, compliance with permitting deadlines and submitted schedules, and compliance with remedial actions. The monitor must notify the commission within 15 days of identifying a material deficiency.

The annual report must determine whether project delays are primarily attributable to the large electrical corporation, a generator interconnection customer, a transmission developer, the ISO, a permitting agency, or another third party, considering whether the corporation's completion of prerequisite obligations affected third-party milestone timing.

Remedial actions are now limited to material deficiencies that the transmission development monitor determines are within the large electrical corporation's reasonable control. Equipment sharing remedies were expanded to include local publicly owned electric utilities, interconnection customers, or other entities (previously only other electrical corporations).

New defined terms: 'material deficiency' (a deficiency reasonably likely to result in significant delay or reflecting a pattern of repeated noncompliance), 'milestone' (a scheduled date or deliverable for which a third party is responsible under an interconnection agreement or project schedule).

When assessing patterns of repeated schedule revisions, the monitor must consider mitigating factors including time spent in environmental reviews, seeking land use permits, acquiring land or access rights, modifying projects for public safety or previously unidentified environmental factors, and supply chain constraints.

The commission must collaborate with the Energy Commission and the Independent System Operator to develop a common reporting format that allows a single submission to satisfy obligations across all three entities and improves public access to project data.

The transmission development monitor may enter into nondisclosure agreements with generators or developers to protect market-sensitive information and may report findings in anonymized form. A new section includes legislative findings justifying the limitation on public records access under Article I, Section 3 of the California Constitution.

The transmission development monitor may refer projects experiencing delays beyond the large electrical corporation's reasonable control to the Governor's Office of Business and Economic Development (including through the Tracking Energy Development Task Force) for interagency coordination and escalation.

The deadline for large electrical corporations (and now transmission owners) to submit a project-specific schedule to the transmission development monitor was shortened from one year to 180 days following adoption of a transmission plan or execution of a generator interconnection agreement.

The deadline for the commission to establish the transmission development monitor was changed from July 1, 2027 to October 1, 2027.

A new defined term 'transmission owner' was added, covering entities other than large electrical corporations that own, control, or are assigned to construct transmission facilities subject to FERC jurisdiction and are obligated to build a project requiring a Section 1001 certificate or General Order 131-E permit. All obligations under the section now apply to both large electrical corporations and transmission owners.

A new provision was added stating that for projects eligible for competitive solicitation under the transmission planning process, the schedule deadline runs from the date the Independent System Operator selects a project sponsor rather than from the date of adoption of the transmission plan.

The requirement for each large electrical corporation to retain an independent third-party auditor selected and approved by the commission was removed. The transmission development monitor is now established directly within the commission without the intermediary auditor layer.

A new provision was added stating that compliance with a remedial action ordered by the commission shall not create a presumption that any cost incurred in complying is reasonable or recoverable in rates under Section 451.

The 'good cause' extension mechanism, which previously allowed a large electrical corporation to request an extension of the filing deadline by demonstrating good cause in a written notice to the commission at least 30 days before the deadline, was removed.

The definition of 'high-priority upgrades' was expanded from solely facilities affecting interconnection or deliverability of at least 100 MW of generating or storage capacity to also include: projects needed for system or local reliability, projects needed to meet state policy objectives, and upgrades that have experienced significant cost overruns and delays that could impact ratepayers.

A new provision was added allowing the commission, by resolution and after notice and opportunity for public comment, to modify the scope, objectives, or reporting requirements of the transmission development monitor's review as necessary to address changes in risks to timely completion of transmission and interconnection projects.

The independent third-party auditor's review scope now explicitly includes the large electrical corporation's compliance with the permitting deadlines in subdivision (a), not just submissions, network upgrade progress, and remedial action compliance.

A new condition was added to the remedial action option allowing generators to procure equipment: the equipment must meet necessary specifications for safety, performance, and reliability.

Auditor selection changed from the commission 'consulting' with the Public Advocate's Office to the commission actively selecting the auditor 'in consultation with' that office, giving the commission a more direct role in choosing the auditor.

A new subdivision (e) explicitly states that the section does not authorize an electrical corporation to seek, or the commission to approve, an increase in revenue requirement or cost of capital under Section 451 based on compliance with remedial actions ordered under this section.

Various typo and formatting corrections throughout the bill text, including removal of duplicated words ('require require', 'corporation corporation') and renumbering of subdivisions to reflect structural changes.

The effective date for requiring large electrical corporations to retain an independent third-party auditor was pushed back six months, from January 1, 2027 to July 1, 2027.

A new definition of 'good cause' was added for extension requests. Good cause may include preparatory conditions such as engineering completion, environmental assessments, and stakeholder coordination, as well as factors beyond the utility's reasonable control including supply chain constraints and permitting delays at federal, state, or local agencies.

The third-party auditor's review scope was expanded to include evaluating the large electrical corporation's compliance with the new good cause provision (subparagraph (B) of paragraph (2) of subdivision (a) of Section 399.13), meaning auditors will now assess whether extension requests were properly justified.

Minor language clarifications throughout, including changing 'a large electrical corporation' to 'the large electrical corporation' in the remedial actions section to clarify it refers to the specific utility being addressed, and adding 'order of the commission' after references to General Order 131-E.

New permitting deadline: large electrical corporations must initiate permitting (file an application or notice under General Order 131-E) within one year of ISO transmission plan adoption or generator interconnection agreement execution.

Remedial action language strengthened from addressing 'any deficiencies' to 'any and all deficiencies' identified by the auditor, making the commission's remedial obligation more comprehensive.

Extension mechanism: large electrical corporations may request a filing deadline extension by demonstrating good cause in a written notice served at least 30 days before the deadline, specifying actions being taken to resolve causes of delay.

If a large electrical corporation fails to meet permitting timelines or make a timely extension request, the commission must take appropriate enforcement action under Section 701.

Scope narrowed from 'each electrical corporation' to 'each large electrical corporation' (defined by reference to Section 3280) for both the new permitting requirement and the existing auditor requirement.

The auditor requirement now has a specific effective date of January 1, 2027, whereas the introduced version had no stated start date.

Definition of 'high-priority upgrades' expanded from facilities affecting interconnection or deliverability of at least 100 megawatts of generating capacity to include 'generating or storage capacity,' bringing energy storage projects within scope.

New subsection (e) formally defines 'large electrical corporation' by incorporating the definition from Section 3280 of the Public Utilities Code.